In parts of the country, getting reliable reception is easier than finding reliable electricity.
Getting reliable figures is notoriously difficult, but humanitarian income from all sources usually accounts for 40-75% of total income.
But new approaches to getting reliable water supplies to farmers and remote villages, supported by PepsiCo Foundation, offer hope of a better future.
During a Web seminar last week that involved more than 600 International SOS clients, almost two-thirds said their biggest challenge in Japan was getting reliable, timely information.
The visit was an attempt to remove myself from the distractions of the city, so that I could work on my master's thesis while also getting reliable child care.
A corollary was that what they were being told at home was not the truth, and for all their awareness of the vested interests that control the TV and press, and the difficulty of getting reliable information even in an age of unregulated social media, this thought troubled them.
